All in the Way of War
by AllyO2
Summary: After a terrible fight, Vala leaves Stargate command vowing never to return. Meanwhile, something terrible has happened to Daniel. Hints of Daniel/Vala. May be complete, but new readers are welcome to review.
1. Chapter 1

It was another long day. Something wasn't right at Stargate command. The controls and computers had all shut down and everyone was trying to get them to work again. The Stargate still worked, it could still be dialed. Daniel had been working for thirty-four hours straight, and he was yelling at everyone who so much as looked in his direction. "My, my. Aren't we in a bit of a temper today?" asked Vala, sitting on the edge of his desk.

Daniel gave her an angry glare and returned to writing down some kind of formula. There was silence except for the sound of his pen writing on the paper. "Maybe you should go and get some sleep," Vala suggested. Daniel looked up once more, still writing.

"Just because you sit around and do nothing doesn't mean that I don't have important things to do, Vala," he said in a low, steady tone.

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked.

"Why do I have to explain everything to you? It means, Vala, that you don't do anything around here."

"Really? I had thought that going on all those missions with you guys and risking my life was doing something. My mistake."

"Do you take anything I say seriously? My point is that you don't fit in here, because you don't know how to do any of the work around here."

Vala looked hurt for a second. "Yes, I really think you should go and get some sleep. You are really sounding like this one man I once knew. He went crazy when he was tired. He, much, like you are doing right now, made these random accusations."

Daniel rolled his eyes. "I'm also tired of hearing all about those people that you once knew. Did you like to hang out with everyone who puts the life of SG-1 in jeopardy?"

"Of course not! And may I remind you that not everyone out there is going to endanger us?"

"No, only most of them. Now that I think about it, I can't believe that you were aloud to join SG-1 after all the things you did."

Vala cleared her throat. "I'd like to remind you, Daniel, that it was you who made the suggestion," she said. He pierced her with such a look that Vala blinked and faltered. "So what, are you telling me to just pack up and leave?"

"Well, your worthless now that your daughter is well…"

"Don't you talk about Adria!" Vala said. It still hurt her to think that her daughter was so wrong in her ideas.

"As I was saying. Maybe you could leave. No one really wants you here anymore," he said calmly.

Vala's head moved a fraction of an inch to the side, and immediately her eyes filled with tears. Her eyes met his, they pleaded with him to take back what he had just said. They asked him to explain why he had said that, why he would even think that. But he said nothing, he made no move as to apolagize. "Hey, Jackson, did you get anything…" it was Mitchell. He was leaning up against the door jam.

Daniel looked up once more, angrily. Mitchell saw Vala. She stood up and turned towards him. Her eyes were filled with unshed tears, she was shaking slightly, and her face showed hurt. It was more than hurt, it was betrayal, it was heartbreak. She rushed past him as soon as she realized that he had seen her.

"What did you do?" Mitchell asked. It had to have been because of something that Daniel had said.

"I told her the truth. C'mon, you don't think there's anyone here that still feels that she's a value to the team? Pass me that book over there. The one with the red cover," Jackson said calmly. Mitchell didn't pass it to him, he threw it at him.

"What the…" asked Jackson, standing up. "What was that for?"

"What's wrong with you?" asked Mitchell angrily. He turned and walked quickly from the room. He had to find Vala, to let her know that Jackson hadn't meant it, that there was something wrong… "Vala," he called at her door. "Vala, open the door!" There was no response from inside and he opened it himself. The room was quiet and still. Nothing had been moved, no one was there.

There was a commotion coming from the gate room. Mitchell expected to find Vala there. But instead he found Carter. She was typing on a keyboard. "What's wrong?" Mitchell asked, expecting the worst. It was the worst.

"Vala just left. She dialed some code, and for some reason we can't trace it," Carter said.

"What? When? Why didn't you stop her?"

"Sorry, but if you've ever tried to stop that woman, you'll find it's about impossible. Especially when she has a laser gun in her hands. She made us move away, dialed the gate, and left. By the time Carter got here, it was too late to stop her."

This was probably the worst thing that could happen, Mitchell thought. Why had she believed Daniel? Why? She should have known that he hadn't meant it? Was there something else he had said to her, something far worse? He would kill Jackson as soon as the chance came.

The chance never presented itself. The door of Jackson's office opened and Daniel came stumbling out. Blood was spurting from his eyes, his nose, and his ears. It was everywhere. Everyone instantly ran for him. Mitchell watched horrified. Yes, things could definitely had gotten worse. And it had.


	2. Chapter 2

Vala was very cold when she woke up. She couldn't see anything. The blowing snow might have added to this, however. She hadn't known what world she was dialing when she dialed it. She had only pushed buttons, just to get away. She wouldn't be going back, ever, so there was no need to know where exactly she was. Vala stood up. Her heart felt heavy, down to the bottom of her soul. She managed to clear all of that out of her head for the moment. Vala was tired; all she wanted was to go to sleep for a very long time. She wished she would have ended up on a desert island where it never got cold.

Eventually the snow slackened. Vala had been walking for a very long time. As the snow stopped altogether she was very surprised to see herself standing in front of village. Or what looked like a village. It could be only a mirage, it would figure. But the people who came outside in five minutes were very real. They all starred at her standing there, a look of equal confusion on her face. "Hello," she said shrugging and smiling. They probably didn't speak English, she thought. Which was why she was surprised when one of them stepped forward.

"Hello," he said. "Who are you?"

Vala took her time answering. She drew closer to the people. They looked normal; the didn't have green faces, or six arms. "My name is Vala. Vala MalDoran. I'm a stranger here. I didn't know where the Stargate would take me."

"I understand," the man said. Vala raised her eyebrows. "Everyone who dials the gate not knowing a specific code ends up here. There have been many."

Vala looked slightly miffed that he had guessed what she had done, but she offered a smile. "In that case, d'ya think I could stay here for a while. I have nowhere to go, and I don't want to be caught in another blizzard like that."

The man laughed. "Blizzard? That was only a mere snowstorm for us."

"Please?" Vala added.

He sighed. "We have let strangers stay with us before, and sometimes they haven't left us in the best conditions. How do we know that we can trust you?"

Vala laughed. "Look at me! Honestly, do I really seem like the person who would cause you trouble. I just need a home for a little while. Please?" she asked again, her voice pleading.

The man considered. Looking at the woman standing before him, he could easily imagine her causing trouble. She looked like she was one of those people who ran from something, who did anything for money. He could imagine her breaking every bone in his body with a single twist of her arm, snapping them like dry twigs. This was what came to mind when he looked at her. Then he looked past her physical appearance. He looked straight into her eyes, and she blinked as if she didn't want him reading them. But there he saw pain. He saw loneliness. He saw someone who was broken, who only wanted love and hope. He wondered what could have happened that was so great, that she had left her home to go to somewhere she wouldn't be able to go back from in order to get away.

"It is my decision that you can stay with us for as long as you want," he said. He raised his hand and beckoned to one of his people. A woman came forward. "Take Miss MalDoran to your home, make her welcome there." He then spoke something in a rapid language to her. She nodded. She asked Vala to follow her. Vala loved the sound of her voice. It was rich, and her accent was wonderful. Vala was reminded of green rolling hills that rolled right to the beach of an ocean, rising to the depths of the deepest mountain.

"My name is Melaine. I live at the edge of town. It is not very far. You look very tired."

"Yes," Vala said. Her voice was thick, and she was focusing on trying to keep her feet moving.

"It has been a long time since you slept?"

"Yes, I have been trying to restore the..." Vala broke off. "Yes," she said simply. The woman nodded, thankfully not asking any more questions. The first thought that entered Vala's head was: roses. This was due to the fact that the house she had just walked into smelled like roses. Vala was too tired to comment and she followed Melaine to a bedroom. She gratefully fell onto the bed and fell asleep at once.

"My point is that you don't fit in here, because you don't do any of the work here...Do you purposely try to hang

around the people who put the life of SG-1 in jeopardy? Your worthless daughter...No one wants you

here anymore."

The words haunted her in her dreams. She wanted to scream. She wanted to forget. They hurt her, pounding into her skull, into her soul with such a fierceness that she wanted to leave them behind. They came from the man she had trusted. The man who had saved her life in more ways than one. The man who had gotten her to stop running in the first place. It was a shock, a terrible shock. And now she could never go back. She was angry with herself for running. She couldn't ever go back, she didn't know how.

When the morning sun streamed through one of the windows, Vala was no less tired than she had been the night before. She had seen dark shadows swim before her eyes all night long. The words had haunted her. She fell asleep as soon as she closed her eyes, and didn't awake for hours. When she finally forced her eyes to open, she was pleased to find that she was almost completely rested. She climbed out of bed, tripping over the tangled blankets. She smoothed her hair and found a brush on the dresser in the room. When she finally went to the kitchen, she looked once again neat and tidy.

The woman, Melaine, was cooking when Vala entered the kitchen. She looked up at Vala with a smile. "You're finally up!" she said. "I've been waiting to start dinner."

"Dinner?" Vala asked. Was it that late?

"It's okay. You must have been very tired," she looked at Vala, for the first time taking in her appearance. "So...tell me about yourself, Vala MalDoran," she said carefully. Her leader only wanted to know where this girl had come from. He had warned her to be careful, because he said that Vala was upset about something.

Vala answered readily. "Well, my name is Vala MalDoran. I used to live in the Sawid empire with my father. He had three or four wives, and he forced me to be his slave. I worked hard. I cleaned all day, I cooked for him, I was chained up in the dungeon of his castle after my work was done. Three days ago I found something in top tower of his castle. It was a ring. I pushed three of the buttons on it, and I was pulled in. That's how I got here."

Melaine nodded. "I'm sorry," she said. "No one should have to go through that. Would you like some coffee?" she asked.

Vala nodded, wondering how her story had sounded. She thought that it had been marvelous. She had watched enough television to know what really... no, she wouldn't think of that. She swallowed the coffee, burning her mouth. She choked, but managed to conceal her actions. Melaine was distracted as the door opened suddenly. A young man walked through it, brushing snow off his hair as he entered. He was smiling, and he looked very handsome, in Vala's opinion. She looked up and gave him a dazzling smile. "Hello," she said, standing. "My name is Vala. As you may know, I arrived here only last night." She shook his hand.

"This is my brother, Scott. He is one of the soldiers in our town," Melaine said.

"Oh," Vala said. "How very interesting."

"He comes here for food most often as he can get away," Melaine continued.

"The army barracks can't cook half as good as my sister," Scott said, sitting down. Melaine brought him a steaming cup of coffee. He had dark hair and tanned skin. He did look like a man you would find fighting in an epic battle for the freedom of his country. Vala watched him intently throughout the meal. She relayed her story of her travels through the Stargate to him. He nodded twice. "Yes, many people arrive here. And then they move on, trying to find a way back home."

"Well, not me. I'm not ever going back. I decided that before I came," Vala said firmly. "I look forward to seeing your...village."

"We are close to the time the snow melts. How long are you planning to stay here?" he asked.

Vala shrugged. "I don't know. I haven't been sure if you charming people would allow me to stay any longer," she said with another smile.

"I'm sure that James would allow it," Scott said. Vala guessed that he was referring to the man Vala had spoken to the night before. "He is very kind."

"So, what are you people called? Do you have a name for your village?" Vala asked.

"We are the A'on. Don't worry, our village is not as desolate as it seems. It is only in the winter that the snow barricades us in. There are many neighboring villages over the hills. We are quite modernized," Melaine said.

Vala nodded and tried to suppress a yawn. She was still tired, and she wanted to return to her bed. Melaine told her to go, and Vala lay there, wondering what kind of place this village was. She wondered if she would be able to grow used to living there, or if she would travel still further.


	3. Chapter 3

Back at Stargate command, things were not good. Daniel Jackson was in the infirmary, and none of the doctors knew what was wrong with him. They had run tests, but none of them revealed anything abnormal. They had preformed a biopsy, which also revealed nothing. Jackson himself looked terrible. His eyes were bloodshot, his face pale and hollow.

Within seconds there had been a team of medics, rushing to help Daniel, who had fallen to the floor, blood surrounding him. They had taken him to the infirmary instantly. Mitchell and Carter had waited for news. Teal'c was off world with the Jaffa, and of course Vala was off somewhere unknown to anyone at Stargate command. So, only Mitchell and Carter were there to await for the news.

"He's stable now," the doctor said.

"What happened?" Carter asked.

"We don't know. We're running some more tests, but so far we've found nothing."

_"Well, is he going to die, or what?" _asked Mitchell with a look that suggested that what they were hearing wasn't helping any.

"We don't know yet. I'm sorry," the doctor said, and disappeared again into the lab.

"Well can we _see _him?" asked Mitchell.

"Yes!" the doctor called, bending over a microscope. Sam and Cameron wasted no time in going into the room to see Daniel. He was awake, and his face looked worse than the Ori with their red eyes.

"I can't believe it! I've got to get that formula finished, or I'm going to be in a bad situation," was Daniel's opening comment.

"Dude, have you looked in a mirror lately?" asked Cameron. Daniel could be dying and here he was talking about how he had to finish a formula. There must be something wrong with his head, also.

Jackson glared and shouted at one of the nurses to stop sitting there and figure out what was wrong with him. "I don't know why Landry even pays you to work here if you don't do anything!" he yelled at the top of his lungs.

"Okay, I don't know what's wrong with you. But when you start making random accusations to people you don't even know, and even worse, to the people you've known for a long time, it's crossing the line. Okay? Vala is gone, we have no idea where she went, and we don't know how to get her back. You can thank yourself for that!" Cameron said.

"What?" Daniel asked. A look of confusion crossed his face, as if he couldn't remember. "Don't you blame ME for telling the truth! If you don't see what I can, that's your problem, not mine!" he yelled.

"Daniel, relax. If you get some rest, I'm sure that you'll get better sooner than if you exert yourself with yelling at everyone for no reason," Sam said soothingly. Daniel didn't calm down. He sat there, glaring at everyone who passed the room.

Sam and Cameron left the room after Jackson started saying that they were most likely working as double agents for the Ori and that he would have to work on a report to give Landry, exposing them.

"I don't like this," Mitchell said. "What do you think happened?"

"Your guess is as good as mine," Sam told him seriously. "He probably picked up some kind of parasite on one of our recent missions. The only problem is that they can't find anything. Which is also the case with me locating Vala's location."

"You don't have anything yet?" asked Mitchell impatiently. "It's been two days. Even Vala couldn't have made that code disappear after such short notice."

"I don't know. But I'm ready to say that I give up."

"If you give up, we'll never get her back," Mitchell said. He sighed. "I wonder what Jackson said to her," he passed a hand over his eyes. "Man, that look on her face..." he trailed off.

"Well, it's gone now. We just have to find out what's wrong with Daniel. Then we can try to find Vala." No sooner had Sam said this, than one of the doctors walked into the room.

"I thought that you'd like to know that he's gone into a coma now," he said quietly. Sam looked over at Mitchell, who blinked his eyes twice, and walked from the room.


	4. Chapter 4

Spring seemed to arrive in only a matter of days. In the mountains, the snow had melted and Vala could see the neighboring villages that she had been informed of. She didn't want to leave the village. She felt safe there, protected from anything that would remind her of the life she had previously led. Every night, she vowed once more that she would never go back to SGC.

Vala and Melaine had also become good friends. They talked often, Melaine even managed to teach Vala how to plant a garden. Scott came by every evening for dinner. He didn't seem quite the wonderful person that Vala had first thought him to be. She found out that he loved to argue. She could scarcely say anything before he cut her off and gave his opinion- which was always the opposite of Vala's.

Dinner was not over until Vala and Scott had a long, drawn out discussion. It could be about the birds flying in a v-shaped formation wasn't the best way to fly, because it didn't look normal, or it could be about how red roses were better than yellow roses. Whatever the case, Vala wondered if there was anything that Scott agreed with her on. She certainly didn't like him, no matter how good looking he was.

Every day now, the army trained harder and harder. Vala could hear the clash of swords as they practiced day by day. She watched them intently, wondering how long they had been in the army. Most of the men were no older than twenty-two. She wondered if any of them had ever seen a battle, if they knew what it was like to fight for a cause so important, so urgent, that there was no way you could possibly give up. She wondered if they felt the rush of excitement just before they engaged in combat, or if battle was only a way of life for them. She wondered how many of them truly believed in fighting for a cause.

It was strange, Vala thought, how she could have adapted to life so easily here among these people. Anyone who had not known her before would never have guessed that she hadn't been born here. She wore long dresses, she worked with the other women in the forest as they hunted for wild berries, or herbs. She had learned how to do most things that she had never even heard of before.

Still, every night, she heard that voice. It taunted her, it made her want to scream. The words were different now. Most of the time they were incoherent, sometimes they screamed at her telling her each and every one of the terrible things she had done in her life. The voice reminded her of Adria over and over again saying that she should have tried harder. They told her how different she was, how she made a mess of even the simplest things.

When she woke in the morning, only a faint reminder of this remained in her head. She had grown accustomed to it. She clung to it as one last reminder of what she had given up. Now, she was free. She had friends. Vala felt truly happy about being here with her new people.

Yet not everyone felt that Vala was as happy here as she thought she was. Akura, the leader of the village, watched her often. Not for one moment had he believed her story, and he searched for some clue as to find out where she came from. Now he was watching her with the other women. She laughed at something Melaine said. Yes, she did seem satisfied. But there was still something about her that puzzled him.

After much pondering, Akura finally discovered what was wrong. It was her eyes. They weren't happy, as the rest of her seemed to be. They still held a sad, lifeless look. They haunted him. They enraptured his soul, and they stood etched in his memory. Once in a while he saw her eyes light up at the sound of gunfire. She turned her head, as if expecting to see an old friend. And then the small flame flickered and died and returned to nothing.

Vala was sitting on the porch of Melaines house. The soldiers were out practicing. They were shooting at targets. For some reason unknown to Vala, they were having trouble hitting them. She watched closely, trying to see what was wrong. Finally she stood up and walked to them. Her steps were determined, yet there was something in her attitude that showed hesitation. "Hey," she said. One of the boys turned toward her. "Could I see that?" she asked. He stared at her blankly. She pointed to his gun. He looked shocked, almost horrified at the thought of a woman even touching a gun.

Vala didn't wait for an answer. She took it. She fired- five times. And hit all the targets. "You'll want to make sure that your sight is clear, that it's lined with whatever the object you're shooting at is lined with the grooves on your gun. I notice that you aren't taking time to think about where your aiming," she said. "It looks easy enough, but even if you're shooting at people, it doesn't hurt to be precise on where you hit them."

"I don't get it. Your a...a _girl_." the boy said.

"And I think you'll find that women don't like it when you speak like their something less than men," she said smiling.

"Yeah, right. You couldn't hit an actual target. That's too easy," he said, pointing at the trees marked with notches. Others were looking at the person that the boy was arguing with.

"Really? Then why couldn't you hit any of them?" asked Vala in a fake voice. "But if you don't believe me..." She took the gun again and fired it. Like a series of loud drum roles, the shots echoed. She actually seemed to be enjoying it. She was beaming, her whole face lit up.

Then, suddenly she stopped. She stared at the gun in her hands for a few long seconds as if she didn't know what it was. Her fingers loosened their grip, and she let it go. It dropped slowly to the ground. Vala backed up, as if it were a poisonous snake about to bite her. Then she turned and fled into the house. Akura saw it all, and he sat back and pondered some more.

Vala was horrified. What had she done? This was unacceptable. She had vowed- she still vowed that she would never, ever do that again. And she had ruined it all. What was more, she had felt happy doing it, even if it was to show up a couple teenage kids. Vala had felt that familiar happiness, that feeling of being protector, of being the hero she had always dreamed of being. Well, this was it. This would never happen again, even if it killed her first.


	5. Chapter 5

Back at SGC, things weren't particularly good either. There was no change in Daniel's condition. Teal'c had returned yesterday, bringing no new news of the Jaffa. He was surprised to hear of all the dramatic events that had taken place in his absence. Now, all three of them were awaiting for news of the outcome of Daniel's latest test that the doctors had preformed. They waited outside, hearing the beeps of the machine inside.

The door opened a few minutes later. The doctor stuck her head out. "I think we found something," she said and motioned for them to follow her. She showed them several of the images from the scan. "I think that I've found the cause of all the blood. Okay, maybe from one of your last missions, he must have picked up some sort of parasite. It's hard to explain, but the parasite must have caused his veins to swell in order to pump more blood to the heat. Somewhere along the way, there was a clot. The veins swelled until they burst, which caused the blood from the eyes, ears, and nose. With pressure like that, it could be very dangerous for the brain."

"Can you kill it? Stop it? Get rid of it?" Mitchell asked.

"We can administer some medication, but since we have no idea what it is, or if it's affecting him some other way, we have to be very careful. But there's something else I have to show you. This way," she led them next to another room where several images were being displayed on the screen. "These are of his brain. Look. This is going to sound weird, but...okay, see the blinking area's right there," she pointed to a large spot on the image. "We've been seeing them as some sort of communication."

"Such as..." Mitchell prompted.

"I'm afraid I don't understand," Carter said.

"In simple words, he's having an inner conversation with himself," the doctor paused and looked at them as if she would understand if they didn't understand what she was saying.

"Like a...bad dream?" Mitchell asked.

"Almost, but not quite. In a dream, your mind is just putting pictures and words in order. But I think that in this case, he truly believes that he's having a real life conversation with someone. And by looking at the speed of these images, I'd say it wasn't a friendly one."

Daniel was sitting in a small room. It's walls were made of some kind of brick, and it was very cold. A figure was sprawled out next to him on the floor, blood surrounding it. He tried not to look at the person, who was long out of reach for any hope of surviving. There was another person sitting in front of him. Daniel had been conversing with them since he had arrived here, three days ago. "If worked out right, the formula will allow the nuclear energy system to expand, creating new weapons to use against enemies," he continued talking about what he had been talking about for quite a while.

"And you are certain that the formula is correct?" asked the voice of the man.

"Quite certain. I have run massive tests. Yes, it is correct," Daniel assured him.

"How long will it take you to write it out?"

"I lost my only copy. But I think I can remember most of it, if you will give me time."

"How much time?"

"A week. Maybe more," Daniel told him. He wondered if he would be allowed to have that much time.

"A week. At most. No more." The only thing Daniel saw in the dim light was red, the color of the Ori's eyes.

I know that this is a somewhat shorter chapter, but I will write more ASAP. Thank you so much for all your wonderful reviews!!!


	6. Chapter 6

Vala liked to sit on the bank of a river that ran past the village. She sat for hours just watching the water rush by, icy and fresh. She wondered how cold it was, and what it would feel like to bathe in it. Recently Vala had had a lot of these strange wonderings. Like how she had wondered what the wind would feel like rushing past her if she jumped from one of the mountains to the ground below, and how far it would take her to land. She wondered how long she could survive without food. And sometimes, in the middle of the night when the voices surrounded her, she wondered how bad it would hurt to take her life, anything was better than enduring so much pain.

As soon as she had these thoughts, she grew horrified. She knew it was wrong to think things like that. She knew that she had not the slightest intention of doing any of these crazy things, but the idea's kept arriving in her head. Vala would ponder them for a while, considering what would happen if she really did do them. Then, she immediately felt sick knowing that at SGC, no idea's would have ever entered her head like that.

Scott sat down next to her. It was his free day, where he didn't have to report to his commander. There was silence. Vala was too caught up in watching the water swirl as it rushed by to notice him at all. Finally he spoke. "So what's wrong?" he asked. Vala looked up as if she had only just noticed him.

"What?" she asked. Her voice was toneless.

"For the last three days you've been sitting around here moping. So what's wrong?" Scott asked again. His voice seemed to command her not to lie to him.

"You really want to know?" she asked. He nodded. "Well, before I left my fathers house, I found this strange crystal. I didn't know what it was. But I found out a short while later that by putting it in direct sunlight, you could make your wishes come true. I wished that I could go and see one of the..."

"Stop!" he held up one of his hands.

"What?" she asked, her voice annoyed.

"I believed I asked for the truth!"

"That was the truth," she said leaning toward him, her voice suggested that it was the most obvious thing in the world. "If you don't believe me, I'm going to leave now," she jumped up.

"You'll just be running yet again from a problem," he said. She turned her head quickly to look at him. He was watching the water. "Face it, Vala MalDoran, your nature is to run from every problem your faced with."

"I really don't think that that is any of your business. Why do you say that anyway?" she asked, her curiosity getting the better of her.

"Any one could tell from watching you. Take Akura, for instance. I bet he could tell you everything you've ever wanted to know about your inner feelings."

"I don't understand," Vala said.

"Look, I know what I see. And I see someone who desperately wants to tell someone their story but won't because they don't know if they should."

"How do you know this?" Vala asked sharply. The man must be one of those psychics she had heard about.

"Simple logic. You and I talk every single day. But never once have you told me anything about yourself." Vala started to protest, but he cut her off. "Anything that's real," he amended.

Vala thought for a long time. She wanted to trust someone. She had to let someone in. She had no one else who was willing to listen. "Okay," she finally said. "I'll tell you."

Again, another short chapter. But keep reviewing:)


	7. Chapter 7

Daniel watched helplessly as the person was hurtled through the air. They crashed against the wall. "Make them stop," they begged. "Please, stop."

"You can thank him for this. Tell him to get the formula written quicker. It has been four days, and he still has only a page written. Or maybe you would prefer to explain why it has taken so much time?" the soldier asked.

"I'm having trouble remembering the exact notations," Daniel said weakly. The blood was starting to make him feel dizzy.

"He wants more than half done by tomorrow," the soldier said, referring to the one Daniel had made his agreement with.

"Uh, it will be." Daniel assured him. "I'm going." he practically ran to the pen and paper in order to satisfy the soldier, who left. Daniel looked over at the person, laying on the ground, gasping for breath, blood everywhere.

"I was on the run for a long time. There was a large price over my head. Every bounty hunter in the universe was searching for me. Somehow I managed to escape being caught. But I found this one man. I needed his help to find the..." Vala was cut off.

"What? I thought you said you were going to tell the truth."

Vala looked at Scott, desperation on her face. "I am telling the truth," she told him.

"No. Come on, how stupid do you think I am? That I would believe another crazy story of yours," Scott stood up and walked away angrily.

"You've got to believe me!" Vala called after him hopelessly. "I am telling the truth!" But he wasn't listening. He was gone. Vala couldn't help it. She burst into tears. Why would no one believe her? She got up and ran back to her house where she locked her door and fell onto the bed. She cried herself to sleep.

_"No, no peace make them stop! Please stop!" she begged, feeling herself go reeling through the air once more. She wondered why Daniel didn't help her. He only sat down to write out the formula. She felt desperately alone. He had not made any sort of contact with her since they had been brought here. He had not spoken to her, he had not so much as offered to help her up. This couldn't be real. But it was. It was horribly real- like one of the horror movies that she had watched with Mitchell. _

_It was a long time before she could move herself. The bleeding had once again stopped, though her head was cut in several places. She was amazed that she had not died already. She walked to Daniel, seated at a wooden desk, writing furiously. "Daniel, say something," she said. He made no response. "Can you not see me? Can you not hear me?" she asked him frantically. Every bone in her body hurt. She felt faint from hunger, plus the stench of blood wasn't exactly like sweet roses. _

_Desperation took over the side of her that always remained calm. She wanted out of here, and now! She wanted to go home. "Why can't you listen to me!" she screeched. She wanted to fling herself at him, to beg him upon her bended knees. But she couldn't let herself do that. She vaguely wondered why she was so hysterical. "Nooo," she cried once more before disappearing into a dark corner._

Vala woke up. Instead of the usual feelings of pain, and fear, she felt calm. She felt peaceful, and very, very happy.

I really hope that Vala wasn't too out of character. I wanted to make this dramatic, after all it is a drama story. But, please, tell me what you think.


	8. Chapter 8

Somehow knowing that she could connect to Daniel through her dreams helped Vala get through the next week. Everyone noticed that there was something different about her. She smiled all the time and Melaine noticed that Vala wasn't always tired. Akura wondered what had happened to make Vala so content all of the sudden. Scott glared at every mention of her name.

Vala now decided that she wanted to visit any neighboring villages. One day she walked to the closest one. The village was only three miles away. She was surprised to find Akura there. He was talking with a man, but upon seeing her, he smiled and called her over. "Vala, this is Tom. Tom, I was telling you about this girl. "

"Hello," Vala said smiling and shaking his hand energetically.

"Hello Vala. Akura has been telling me about you for many days. Welcome to our village."

"Thank you."

Later that night, Akura found Vala standing on her front porch. "Hello, Vala," he said.

"Hi. Well, I didn't expect to find it that...advanced in technology," Vala said, referring to the village,

"They are much more advanced than we are. Vala, that man I was talking to..."

"Tom? He seems very nice," Vala interrupted.

"Yes. He is the technician. I asked him if he could look at our Stargate."

"Why?" Vala asked.

"I think he can fix it if you want to go home."

"No! No, don't send me back!" her voice instantly became panicked.

"Why not?" Akura asked, gazing at her intently.

"I won't go back. You can't make me go!"

"Alright...you don't have to. But tell me why you don't want to go back."

"It's hard to explain," Vala said. She went inside and slammed the door behind her, surprised by her vehemence. She wanted to go home; she wanted it almost more than anything. But something told her not to, that it would be bad to go back to SGC. She would rather stay here than go back and face Daniel. Plus, knowing that she kept seeing him in her dreams, him not helping her, and that formula was all to weird.

It was midnight when Mitchell thought of something. He wondered how he had not thought of this before. He thought about it for a long time. In the morning, he found Sam in the gate room. "Sam, I think I know where Vala went," he said. She looked up excitedly.

"You do? How?" she asked.

"It's simple. Okay, Vala probably didn't have much time to decide where she was going. She just wanted to get away quickly, and let's face it, Vala is kind of impulsive. So she probably came in here and just pushed buttons. And you know where that takes people."

Sam thought for a moment. A broad smile covered her face. "To Kent?" she asked.

Mitchell nodded. "To Kent," he said.

"You're a genius," Sam said. "Why didn't I think of that? It's so obvious."

Akura was surprised as he heard people shouting. He rushed out to see them standing around the Stargate. "There's someone traveling," he was told. Vala had just come out of her house when she heard it. People coming? That could only mean one thing. She rushed back inside and out the back door in time to hear Mitchell's voice.

"Were looking for Vala MalDoran. Have you seen her?" he asked.

Vala reached the forest, running. She tripped and fell, but she got back up and ran faster. She had to get away. She couldn't...no, she WOULDN'T let them take her back! She could imagine what was happening; she could hear it all in her mind. "She's in her house. It's over there." Cameron and Sam would walk over, knock on the door. When there was no answer, they would open it, find the back door open, and see her footprints. They would be running after her, following her like hounds following a fox. She would grow tired, too tired to keep running and they would catch her. They would drag her back to SGC where she would be put in a closed room because everyone would think she was crazy. She wouldn't ever be able to get away again.

Vala veered off, looking for a place to hide. She knew the forest well, having traveled here with the other women to look for herbs. She couldn't breath. The terror was making her head spin. She only knew that she had to keep running, she mustn't' let them catch up to her.


	9. Chapter 9

_Two days. It had taken Daniel two days to finish writing out the formula. He had been well aware of Vala's screaming at him. But he couldn't stop. That formula was worth more than their lives. It was worth more than her pain. He could do nothing and after a long time her crying had stopped and she disapeared into a dark corner. This happened often. She would try to talk to him and then she would suddenly stop. She would remain quiet for hours and suddenly she would come back. Daniel had left this room once or twice before, also. _

_When he had left and returned to the other world, he was always impatient to get back. He knew how important it was to give the Ori that formula. He wanted nothing more than to escape and get that formula written out. Daniel had been very surprised when the Ori brought Vala there. He figured they were going to ask her for something as well. Instead, they only found joy in torturing her; most likely to make sure that Daniel knew what would happen if he didn't write out the formula. What he didn't understand was why it was so important._

_Daniel stacked the four papers neatly and put them down on his desk. He flexed his hands. Finally, he was finished. Now he could go and look for Vala. But surprisingly, she wasn't there. She wasn't sitting where she had been ten minutes ago. He wondered where she went. There was certainly no way out of this room. At least, none that he knew of. He saw the blood. It made him sick to look at it. Daniel wondered, if they ever got out of here, if she would survive from so many injuries. The thought made him feel sick. _

_The heavy stone door was bolted shut. Daniel put his weight against it just to make certain. The sound of footfalls behind him made him turn around. Vala was standing behind him. "Daniel, their after me. Their going to take me. You can't let them." And before his eyes, she disapeared again._

Vala had been dozing in a clearing far out in the heart of the forest. She had woken up when it had started to rain. In her dreams, she had spoken to Daniel. For the first time, she sensed that he had heard her. The thought filled her with joy. But not for long. Three people entered the clearing. She saw whom they were and ran. They yelled after her. "Vala, it's us!"

_"Like I don't know that," _Vala thought. She zigzagged through the trees. She ran for a long time before she decided it was safe to stop. Vala was breathing hard and she felt like she was suffocating. She turned around. And there stood Mitchell.

"Vala? Vala, it's okay."

"No," she shook her head. "No, it's not." She tried to turn and run, but didn't let her. The rain was making the ground hopelessly muddy. It soaked the hem of her skirt and made it almost impossible to run.

"Come back with us," Mitchell offered.

Vala thought. The idea tempted her. But then something told her not to. "No."

Cameron must have seen her temptation, because he tempted her further. "I know that after what Daniel did..."

"Don't say that! Don't you even say that name!" she said, her voice so low that it could have been poison.

"What did he say to you?" asked Cameron, looking at her steadily.

Vala shook her head, not answering. Cameron took a step toward her and was surprised by her holding a gun out. It was smaller than a P-90, but it looked just as deadly. Vala had taken it from the armory. She had grabbed it from a drawer in the house before she had run out.

"I am not going back with you. If you try to make me, I will kill you." She meant it. Her eyes were burning with intensity. She wanted to make sure that Cameron knew that she wasn't joking, either.

He did know it. He also knew that there was something wrong with her. But he didn't know what. So he tried again. "I'm not going to make you go back. I promise. But you should know that after what your argument with...him that he became very sick. He's there in the infirmary right now, probably dying. Don't you want to go back and...?"

"That's not true," Vala said. It couldn't be. He was a prisoner of the Ori, being forced to give them a formula.

"How do you know?"

"Because, I can see..." Vala could, and her voice faded as she saw Daniel in the room. Or she glimpsed him as she was thrown against the wall again.

_"What do you want?" asked Daniel. "I've given you the formula."_

_"But how do we know that it is correct?"_

_"You'll just have to trust me on that," Daniel said. _

_"I think that we will keep you here just a while longer to make certain."_

_"Just...don't..." Daniel started. The soldier left. "Vala? Vala?"_

_She smiled. "You can here me?" she asked. _

_"Vala. Vala..."_

"Vala?" she snapped back to find it raining, standing in a clearing pointing a gun at Mitchell.

"What?" she asked angrily.

"Come on. Let's go back. Let's go..." he reached forward to take her arm. She almost let him, and then she fired the gun.

Once again, I apologize for the shortness of the chapters. I'll try to post more ASAP. Please review and tell me what you think. :)


	10. Chapter 10

Sam was surprised when she came face-to-face with someone. He was a young man, but he had the look of a fierce warrior. "What?" she asked, stepping back in surprise.

"Sorry. Did I scare you?" he asked.

"You could say that," Sam said.

"Sorry. Um, who are you? May I ask?"

"My name is Colonel Sam Carter. I'm here to find Vala MalDoran." She studied his eyes intently. They were deep, hollow, and there seemed to be no life in them.

"Oh. Don't you think that she should stay here? She's so happy, and she doesn't want to go back." Instantly the man's eyes became fierce. He focused them intently on Sam.

Sam seemed to hesitate, and then she nodded. "Of course. If she's happy here, she shouldn't be forced to return. I'll call Mitchell and tell him."

Mitchell, at the moment, was staring at his arm. The bullet had only nicked him, but it still hurt. But it was bleeding an awful lot for such a small wound, he thought. Vala had run off. "Cam, this is Sam. I think you should leave Vala alone," she said.

Mitchell spoke into the transmitter. "At the moment, I think you're right."

"Not just for the moment. I mean, permanently."

"What?" he asked surprised. They had been trying to find her for days now. After all that, she just wanted to give up?

"Listen, don't move. I'm coming after you. Stay there," she said again.

"I'm not going anywhere," he mumbled, sitting down. The rain had stopped. His arm hurt like crazy, making him wonder if he had been hit harder than he thought.

It was only a matter of minutes before Sam found him. She was followed closely by a young man. Mitchell recalled seeing him at the Stargate. Now that he thought about it, the man hadn't seemed too happy to hear that they were looking for Vala. "What happened?" Sam asked.

"What'd you think?" asked Mitchell, annoyed. He could do with a little less talk and a little more attention to his arm.

"Vala. Right. That's another reason why you aren't going to be taking her back. She clearly doesn't' want to go," the man said.

"I'm sorry, who are you?" asked Mitchell.

"Scott. I'm a close friend of Vala's."

Mitchell raised his eyebrows. This didn't seem like the kind of guy Vala would hang around with. There was something about him that he didn't like. "Hey! We looked for her a long time. If you think that we're just going to..."

"No, Cam. No, Vala should stay here," Sam told him quickly.

Mitchell looked at the young man, whose eyes bore into his. Finally, Mitchell nodded. "Okay. That man, Akura, said that the Stargate should be fixed soon. We will go back soon and leave Vala here," he agreed.

"Good. Then you should come back to the village with me and have dinner with my sister and me. I don't doubt that Vala will show up soon. This way."

A voice in Vala's head told her that it would be safe to return home. She turned around and began walking back. Vala was cold, the rain had soaked her to the skin and her teeth began to chatter. Luckily, she knew a short cut back and would reach her home in five minutes. When she stepped into the warm house, she basked in the warmness and went to change her clothes. For some reason she felt compelled to put on the pants and shirt she had been wearing when she first arrived here.

_"Don't you just want to know what it feels like to be that person again?" she asked herself._

_"No! You don't want to know." another voice responded. _For a moment, Vala felt dizzy as she forced herself to listen to her own voice. She sat down on the bed.

_"It won't hurt me," _she told herself

_"But it might. Come on, Vala. You don't want to wear those clothes, do you?" _When Vala didn't answer, the voice asked _"Do you?" _somewhat harsher this time. Vala shook her head.

_"No," she thought. "No, I don't," _and she selected a clean dress from the closet.

When Vala finally arrived in the kitchen, she was surprised to see Sam and Mitchell sitting at the table with Scott. Mitchell's arm had been bandaged.

"Hello Vala," Sam said. "How are you?"

"Actually, I'm great," Vala said smiling broadly. "It's wonderful to see that you're okay, Cameron," she said as she sat down across from Scott. "I really thought that you wouldn't be able to survive out there after I left."

"What, do I _look _like a baby?" asked Mitchell, slightly annoyed. Vala only shook her head and smiled.

"I have great news, Vala. They said you could stay here," Scott told her.

What was it? Was it disappointment that crossed her face? Or was it only happiness? Mitchell couldn't be sure. But there was definitely something about her that told him that she didn't want to be here. But he felt that thought fade into nothing but fog until it disappeared entirely from his mind. Of course not. She was happy here. Scott said so. And if Scott said so, it must be right.

Please tell me how it's going. Thanks for all the wonderful reviews. You guys make it worth the while to write all this!


	11. Chapter 11

Think about how long thirty-five seconds is. Imagine trying to write a paragraph in those seconds. Now imagine that in that paragraph you have to give good reasons why you shouldn't listen to yourself. You have to convince yourself not to give in to what your mind is telling you to do. It has to be so convincing that you believe it; and it has to get finished in thirty-five seconds. Then you have to run.

This was what Vala had to do. She was sitting at the desk in her room, waiting. She knew that it was going to happen soon, and when it did, she would be ready for it. Indeed, she soon felt her mind clear. She picked up a pen and began to write. Vala's hand flew across the paper. She made a list, and wrote down some good reasons. Suddenly the pen dropped and she wanted to tear it up and burn it. Then she read number one on the paper. _1. Resist the urge to get rid of this paper! _Vala managed to leave the room with the paper still lying intact on her desk.

­

At the same time this was happening, Mitchell was trying to figure out how to convince Sam that they should tie up Vala and drag her back through the Stargate with them fast enough so that Scott wouldn't know what they were doing. Cameron's mind was clear. It had been for three hours now. Sam still seemed to be dazed, and since Mitchell's talk with Vala hadn't been good for anything except to get him shot, he decided that it wouldn't be the best idea to convince Sam that Vala needed to go back. What further convinced him was the fact that Sam still had her P-90 with her. Therefore, Cameron wanted to make sure that his plan was foolproof.

He already had some ideas that it hadn't been a coincidence that Sam, Vala, and himself had been convinced that Vala should stay here. He strongly suspected Scott, who was in a big hurry that the Stargate should be finished so that SG-1 could go back to wherever they had come from. But Cam couldn't do anything about him because he didn't know how many people in the village were on Scott's side. With his luck, he would kill Scott and then turn around to see the whole village standing there ready to kill him.

Sam, in the meantime was trying to figure out how she could convince Cameron that they should forget about leaving Vala here in the village. She wondered how she could possibly tell Cam that Scott was the one who convinced Vala that she didn't want to go back to SGC. Judging from the way Vala had shot at Mitchell when he had suggested that they go back through the Stargate, it wouldn't be the best thing to suggest. Sam only had a few minutes of thought before her mind relaxed back into the fog. Then she got up and went to talk to Vala.

"Vala, did you hear anything about how long it would be before the Stargate is fixed?" Sam asked as soon as she met Vala.

"I heard that it'll be ready tomorrow," Vala said. She appeared to be waiting for something, or someone. She had her plan all worked out. She knew exactly what she was going to do. Vala planned to go and find Mitchell. "Hey Sam, do you know where Cameron is?" she asked.

"Uh...by the river, I think," Sam said.

"Thank-you. Now, I have to go. Bye!" Vala went inside. She ran straight to her room, where she changed her clothes. There was no resistance this time as she dressed in the pants and shirt, discarding the dress. She grabbed the paper off the desk and looked at it. _2) Change your clothes. 3) Get the gun 4)_ _Find Mitchell. _Vala already knew where he was. She ran through the back door, anxious that no one, particularly Scott, should see her.

Scott was not the person that Vala met. It was Melaine. She looked very angry. "Where are you going, Vala?" Vala's friend asked.

"Oh, hey!" Vala said, laughing. "What are you doing back here?"

"Vala! Answer my question. Where are you going?"

Vala smiled. "Oh, well, it's just such a beautiful day. I thought I'd go for a walk...go for a swim...have a picnic..." she shrugged and smiled again.

"No," Melaine said, shaking her head.

"No?" asked Vala hesitantly with that smile she got when she was up to something mischievous. She also shook her head.

"No," Melaine said. She looked dangerous. She looked like a murderer. Her eyes were _glowing. _

"Oh. Well, I guess I'll just have to..." she stopped talking as she grabbed onto Melaine with a chokehold. Melaine was stronger than she looked. She grabbed onto Vala and flipped her onto the ground. Vala jumped to her feet, and dug her elbow into the back of Melaine's neck. Melaine gasped, and seemed to loose some of her strength. Vala took advantage of it and kicked her in the head. There was a thump as Melaine's body relaxed and she lay limply on the ground. Vala took one last look at her, turned the opposite direction.

Mitchell saw two women approaching. They were both running. Sam reached him first. "Cam, I really think we should just forget the whole plan to leave Vala behind! It would really be just..."

"...simpler to take her with us and spare the grief of leaving her all alone. I really don't think it's..." Mitchell interrupted.

"...safe to leave her behind here all alone here when we don't know what could happen to her here. She really needs to go back," finished Vala. She looked behind her.

"And, um...guys, can we...hurry on that?" she asked. Three other people were running, and all of them were carrying stun guns.

"Okay," said Sam. "That's probably a good idea. The gate is ready, by the way."

"Well come on, I'm not anxious to be..." Mitchell started.

"COME ON!" Vala yelled, grabbing his arm and pulling him with her. "We don't have time!"

They barely got to the Stargate in time. Mitchell dialed it and they practically flew through it. Vala caught her breath as she realized that she was going _home._ And she could see if she could find out what was happening with Daniel.


	12. Chapter 12

"Well, everyone else thinks that it's been days since I've seen you, but I know that it's only been about five hours," Vala said to Daniel. He was very much alive, and he certainly was right in front of her. She was concerned that her dreams were just that...dreams. She wasn't even going to think about them. Vala had been sitting next to Daniel since she had got back. She had been reading, but now she was staring at him again, wondering how he could ever have said such terrible things to her.

How could someone so sweet, so likeable, be that cruel? It was crazy to think about that now. It was over, and Vala had forgiven him. There was no way she could be mad at him when he was laying here, possibly dying. She wished she could talk to him. She wished she could let him know that she wasn't mad at him. Vala wished that she could find out what he had been thinking when he had yelled at her like that.

But it was all over now. She was home and she knew that there couldn't be anywhere else that she would want to be. She was home. And she fully intended to stay here. Vala knew who she was, and who she wanted to be.

Two hours later, Vala though of something. _The formula! _Daniel had been working on one when he had yelled at her. He had also been working on one in the dreams. No, Vala didn't believe the dreams, but she would like to know what that formula was. She left the infirmary and went to Daniel's office. It was later at night, and everything was quiet.

Vala looked around at Daniel's office, a smile on her face. It had been so long. She remembered all those moments in here. Like how she had wanted to use his computer to see what kinds of questions she would have been asked when she was questioned by operative from the I.O.A., Daniel had told her that she needed his password, and how annoyed he had been when she told him that she already had it. She remembered when Adria had...no, she wouldn't think of that.

She dug through his desk drawers. Vala didn't bother to put them back. She threw them over her shoulder, urgently digging through his desk. She found several pictures of the team, she found his photo album. But she didn't stop to look, partly because she had already gone through his desk and looked at everything in it when she hadn't been aloud to go off world, and partly because she only wanted to find that formula.

It wasn't there. He must have moved it. And then she looked on top of the desk. "Oh," she said. It was lying there, neatly stacked on the left hand side of the desk. She smiled guiltily, looking at all the papers scattered around the room. "Oops. Oh, well," she sat down on a chair and looked through it. None of it made sense to her. It was all notations and decimals and letters. It was impossible for her to read any of it.

Vala put the four pages on the desk again and curled up on the couch. She was so tired. She looked around, imagining that any moment Daniel would walk in, see how his desk had been emptied, and explode in anger. She wouldn't mind. It would be enough just to see him. The room swam before her eyes for a moment. She blinked the tears back and closed her eyes.

"What is this?" asked Sam.

"I found it in Daniel's office. I didn't know what it was for," said Vala.

"It's hard to read. This is very advanced," said Sam. "But I think it definitely has something to do with a nuclear powered _explosion. _And you say that this was what Daniel was working on?"

"I guess so," Vala said.

"Why would he even want to develop something like this?" asked Sam. Her brow furrowed. "I would think that this is too dangerous to think about."

"Uh, what exactly would it do?" asked Vala.

"If this formula was put into a solid form, it would make a bomb to wipe out the entire universe," Sam said.

Vala didn't understand how Daniel could even think of such a thing. Then she remembered that in her dreams, he had been writing a formula to give to the Ori. Why? She wondered briefly if the dreams had not been dreams at all but that they were actually happening. It made sense.

Vala returned to the infirmary. She wondered how all of this was possible. The fact that this somehow involved the Ori made it all seem more believable. Vala sat down again next to Daniel. She wished that she could explain all of this somehow. She gazed at him intently, willing him to wake up.

Then she noticed something that she hadn't before. Daniel had a scar that ran across the side of his face. At least, this man did. She didn't remember that Daniel had one. She wondered how she couldn't have noticed it before. Everything else looked the same, except for that scar. Vala stood up and ran to find General Landry.

"What are you saying? That that isn't Jackson?" asked Landry.

"I know it does sound a bit strange, but...yeah. You can look at a picture if you don't believe me," said Vala, a little annoyed that Landry never trusted her judgment. Landry just looked at her. Vala suddenly thought of something. She told Landry about all of her dreams. "I think that maybe Daniel was having them too, at first, and then maybe they did take him. When I had those dreams, I always woke up in a very bad mood. That could be why Daniel was so grouchy. Plus the fact that he hadn't had a lot of sleep anyway. Then, he was taken by the Ori and someone who resembled him was sent here instead, so that you wouldn't know the difference."

This seemed to convince Landry further. He nodded. "So what do we do now?" he asked.

"Well, sir, if I may suggest..."

"Vala, tell Mitchell and Carter about this," Landry interrupted.

Vala raised her eyebrows in the annoyance of being interrupted when she had just thought of a brilliant plan. But she didn't want to question the General's orders. So she nodded and went to find Cameron and Sam. She found them in the lab. They were talking about the formula. "Guys, listen," Vala told them everything.

"What?" asked Mitchell. "Say that again, slowly."

Vala took a deep breath and repeated it. Mitchell looked somewhat surprised, Sam looked confused.

"So what's Landry going to do?" she asked.

"I was going to tell him about this great plan I thought of, but he interrupted me before I even got started."

"No offense, Vala, but your plans are sometimes a little more dangerous than necessary," Mitchell said. Vala shot him a look that clearly said to shut up.

"So? Do you want to hear it?" she asked.

"I don't know. Do I?" asked Mitchell.

"Yes," said Vala. She waited a minute and then started. "I think that I should be beamed onto the Ori's ship. From what I saw in my dream's I know what one it is and where it is. I can find Daniel, and get him back here, safe and sound," Vala said.

"No," Sam said quickly. "That's too dangerous. There's no way that the General will ever agree to that."

'Well," said Vala getting a devilish look on her face. "Does he really have to know?"

"Vala! Of course he does!" Sam said, shocked.

"Okay, which would you rather have? Daniel, dying in the hands of the Ori, or being able to do something but not because General Landry wouldn't like it?" asked Vala.

"I think we should try it," Mitchell said. Sam turned her gaze on him.

"What?" she asked.

"Vala's right. For once. And if this formula is the one that Daniel's giving to the Ori, it could wipe out the entire galaxy. That would be worse than facing Landry's wrath."

"Okay. Vala, go and tell your idea to Landry. If, and only if, he disagrees to all reasoning, we'll try it," Sam said, giving in.

"Good!" Vala said, smiling. "I'll go right now."

Thanks for all the wonderful reviews! I'm so glad that you like my story. Please, keep reviewing and I'll keep writing. By the way, is this getting too boring to read? Probably.

I'll add some more excitment.


	13. Chapter 13

"Absolutely not!" General Landry said after hearing Vala's suggestion.

"Why?" asked Vala.

"Because it's a crazy plan. There's no way that the Ori would let you walk in and then walk out again with Daniel."

"But Daniel got in alright when I was there. And I would be really, really quick. I know where he is. I even know what ship he's on," Vala said pleadingly.

"No. When we come up with a safer plan you will be the first one to know," Landry told Vala.

"But Daniel may be dead by then," she argued.

"Vala!"

"Fine," she said. When she left his office, she slammed the door as hard as she could. Cameron was in his office. He looked up as she came in. "Were you guys serious when you said that we would go alone if the General didn't agree?" she asked.

"I was. I don't know about Sam, though."

"Okay, then," Vala sighed. "I think that we may have to go now."

"Alright. Go find Sam," Cameron said. He stood up. Vala gave him a big smile and went straight to the lab. Sam was there.

"Sam?"

Sam seemed guess what Vala had come to say. "Are you ready then?" she asked.

"Yeah," Vala nodded. "Cams waiting for us."

"Okay," she followed Vala out the door.

It was very simple. Several hours later, Cameron, Vala, and Sam were standing on the Odyssey. They were in the range of an Ori ship. "Okay," Vala said. "You will beam me down onto that ship, I will find Daniel, and then you beam us out again. Okay?"

"No. We're going with you," Cam said.

"No," Vala also said. "You have to stay here in case there should be trouble and you have to come get us."

"Alright." Sam and Mitchell went with Vala. "I don't know how long it's going to be before Landry guesses that we're here. So let's try to make this as quick as possible," Mitchell warned. Vala nodded and they beamed her down.

Vala pulled the hood of the cloak she wore over her head. She continued down the corridor. She didn't see anyone. Vala swiftly turned to the right and hurried down to the lower decks. Fifth door on the right, take a left from there. She knew her way excellently.

She found the door. It was iron, and it was bolted shut with some kind of chain. Vala shot them and they fell off. Vala struggled to pull the door open.

Daniel stood up at the sound of the door opening. He was ready to fight; he wanted to go home. His jaw dropped as he saw Vala enter, her P-90 in her hand. She dropped it at the sight of him standing there. He was equally surprised. "Vala, how...?"

"Are you real?" she asked him.

"What?"

"Your not a...a dream? Your really here?" she asked.

"Yeah, last time I checked."

"Good," Vala wanted to run to him and hug him tightly. But then she remembered what he had said to her. Even if he had been sick before he had been taken, it still hurt. "Come on, we have to get you out of here."

"You're not going anywhere," someone said from behind her. Vala turned around, ready to fire. But seeing that there were about fifty of them, she decided not to. "Vala MalDoran. I should have known." It was the Prior. "Bring her," he ordered.

"Wait, no. I can explain!" Vala said.

"How do you explain any of this?" he asked. Daniel tried to stop them, but the fear of being shot kept him from being too hostile. He watched as Vala was dragged through the door and it was bolted again.

"Well, how do you explain this?" the Prior asked.

"Very simple, actually. You see, I had been visiting this place in dreams. Then when I returned to SGC, I discovered that the Daniel we had in our infirmary wasn't the real Daniel. So I decided to come here and bring him back. With your permisson, of course," Vala added, smiling.

"What are we going to do with you now?" asked the Prior. "It's been one too many times that we've found you on our ship, Vala MalDoran."

"You actually keep count?" asked Vala.

"We cannot kill you because of the protection of your daughter. What do we do with you?" he asked.

"You could just let Daniel and I go. I'll bet that would keep me from returning," Vala said, a little too hopefully.

"No. No, I think I know what will make you wish that you never came here."

"You're not going to try to teach me about the Ori gods, are you?" asked Vala. "Because there would hardly be any chance for punishment in that."

"No."

Vala was surprised to see that they were going back to the room Daniel was in. She hurried to keep up with the Prior's fast pace. He unlocked the door and pushed her into the room. The door closed again. Vala was confused. What were they going to do to her?

"What happened?" asked Daniel.

"I don't know," Vala said, rubbing her hands together. "I guess the plan of rescue is going to have failed. But it's okay because Mitchell and Carter should be here soon." The Ori had taken her radio and any weapons she had.

"No. I mean, what's been going on this whole time. I thought you were here, and then you weren't and then..."

"Oh. Well, it's a long story."

"I don't think that we're going to get out of here any time soon."

"Hmm? Oh, right. Well, we had that huge power outage at SGC. You obviously hadn't slept in a few days. I went to your office and you, uh...you yelled at me," Vala paused for a second. "Anyway, I left. In the meantime, you were beamed up by the Ori. I don't know how. But then they sent someone to your office that looked like you so that not anyone at SGC would know that you were gone. In the meantime, I somehow ended up in a village called Kent where I lived for a while. I made friends with a girl named Melaine. Then I started having these weird dreams where I was in this room with you. I don't think they were dreams though, because sometimes when I woke up I actually did have several injuries. There was blood..."

"Yeah," Daniel said, remembering the image of her flying across the room, all the blood, and her screaming. "I think they did that to make sure that I kept writing that formula."

"Right. So Cameron and Sam came to find me. I was sick or something. That girl Melaine and her brother, Scott, had some kind of influence over me. I was convinced that I wouldn't go back to SGC. So when Mitchell came to find me I panicked and shot him in the arm. But I did go back. You were supposedly in the infirmary in a coma. Then I found out that it wasn't you and here I am."

"Charming story," someone said. Vala and Daniel both looked at the door. They hadn't realized that anyone was there. The man grabbed Vala and, before she could protest, stuck a needle into her arm.

"What was that for?" asked Vala.

"Wait five minutes and see."

"Okay, well that was weird," Vala, said, rubbing her arm. She wondered how bad it could be and what would happen in five minutes. She soon found out. First, there was a sharp pain in her head, then in her stomach. Then it felt as if she couldn't breath and she struggled for air.

"Vala?" asked Daniel, instantly aware of her pain.

"Can't breathe...," she gasped. She knelt down on the floor, trying to draw air.

"Vala? Vala, it's okay. Vala?" asked Daniel. He was too late.

A million thanks for all the reviews.


	14. Chapter 14

Sam and Cameron were also in trouble. General Landry had discovered their absence. They had been ordered back to SGC at once. They were going to beam Vala and Daniel aboard. The only problem was that they didn't know if Vala had found Daniel yet.

Vala wasn't feeling any better. She managed to stand up as the door opened and the Prior came in. "Well, Vala MalDoran, how you feel now?" he asked her.

"Well..." Vala began. Her breath cut short. She gasped for air and fell sideways, leaning heavily against Daniel. The Prior smiled a low, nasty smile.

"It only gets worse from here." He left.

"Daniel," Vala gasped out. "Sam...Should..." she could barely talk. The pain in her stomach seemed to be biting through her bones and into her head.

"Vala, don't breathe!" Daniel commanded her.

"What?" she asked.

"If you don't try to breath for a while it gets better."

"How..."

"They used the drug on me. Don't breathe."

Vala suddenly grasped Daniels hand. For a moment, he felt very happy. The fact that Vala trusted him enough to listen to him was overwhelming. Until he realized that she had grabbed him for the soul reason of taking him with her when Sam beamed her aboard.

Vala had no sooner arrived on the ship than two medics grabbed her and took her to the infirmary. Daniel was left standing with Sam and Mitchell. "Well," said Mitchell. "I really didn't believe it until now. Vala's theory seemed a little crazy to me. It's good to see you."

"Yes, Daniel, we didn't think that Vala would manage to get you here, too," Sam said.

"C'mon. Vala is a very capable girl," Daniel argued. He was smiling, though he felt sick. Sam seemed to notice this and ordered him to go to the infirmary. She then went to contact General Landry.

Well, I think that there will only be one or two more chapters on this story. I ask only for your reviews. Thanks!


	15. Chapter 15

"Daniel?" asked Vala. She entered his office. He looked up and smiled briefly.

"You're looking better," he observed.

"Thanks. I feel better."

"So what punishment is Landry giving you for defying his orders?" asked Daniel.

Vala shrugged. "We have to promise that it will never, ever happen again."

Daniel coughed. "Yeah right. Like that's going to happen."

"Well I'm going to try. Vala MalDoran sticks to her word," Vala argued. Then she became more serious. "Daniel, I found a formula on your desk. Sam says that it contained the configurations to create a nuclear explosion. What was it for?" she asked.

"Oh. That."

"Yes. That. What was it for," she asked again.

"I don't know. You know that I was under the influence of the Ori. I can't remember anything that I did in those few days when I was here. It's blank in my mind."

"So you... wouldn't remember..." Vala's voice trailed off and she looked thoughtful.

"Probably not."

"I heard you tell the Prior that you would write it out and give it to him. Did you?"

Daniel was silent. "I wrote it. Or I tried to. I can't be sure how accurate it was. The drugs they were giving me were very effective in making my mind foggy."

"So you could have written the directions for something that can destroy the universe, or you could not have?" Vala summarized.

"Yeah."

"And it's still out there...in the hands of the Ori."

"Yeah."

"Daniel, this is bad." Vala grabbed his arm and pulled him from his chair. "Come on."

"What?"

"We have to tell Sam. And Teal'c, and Mitchell. But probably the most important, General Landry," Vala told him urgently.

"I don't think that's such a..."

"Daniel!" Vala said sharply. "You have just put every one of our lives in danger. Every life in this universe is at danger. And you don't want to tell anyone?" she asked disbelievingly.

"It might not even work. Then this would all be for nothing."

"For nothing? You, yelling thoughtless accusations at me that hurt me so bad that I LEFT! You, putting worry into everyone's mind when you walked out of this office with blood...pouring out of your eyes, nose, and ears. Me, under the influence of two people, going back and forth from Kent to that Ori ship, or being thrown against a stone wall more times than I could count? You not even bothering to help because you were so busy putting EVERY ONE of our lives in danger! I SHOT Mitchell because of that influence. I ran from the people I trust most. And when I finally get back I go onto an Ori ship, again, risking my life to save yours! I am injected with a drug that makes me feel worse than being shot, getting tortured, being stabbed with a knife! And, you, you sit here and tell me that it was NOTHING?" Vala screamed. Her face was full of fury. The words that came from her mouth could have been poison. But what really set it all off was the face that she was crying.

"Vala..."

"Don't even...you had better go in there and tell General Landry every single word of what you did! Because if you don't I will. And you don't even want to hear any part of what I have to say to him," Vala's voice was sharper than that of a knife.

Daniel said nothing but the look on his face made Vala want to scream with anger and break down sobbing at the same time. The look was cold, set, and also angry. Vala pointed at the door. Daniel only stared. And then he slowly went from the office. As soon as he left, Vala fell onto the couch. Her sobs shook her body. They weren't from sadness, they were from anger. They were from three weeks worth of pent up fear and anger and pain.

Okay, let's say two more chapters. Please, please review. Thanks!


	16. Chapter 16

Vala was called to the General's office a few hours later. Carter, Mitchell, and Daniel were also there. Landry looked very serious. "Vala, Jackson has just told me everything concerning that formula. This is a very serious matter. Jackson isn't to blame, of course, but this calls for serious measures."

"Sir, do you have a plan to get the formula back?" asked Sam.

"An extraction plan is being thought of," General Landry assured her.

"Why can't we just...?" Vala started but was interrupted by Cam.

"Look, the formula is almost positively on that ship still. What's wrong with us going on there, planting a few bombs, and then leaving it?" asked Cam.

"Exactly what I was going to suggest," said Vala. She smiled broadly, which caused her head to hurt. She still had not fully recovered from the drug that the Ori had given her.

General Landry seemed to be about to protest, and then gave up. "Alright," he sighed. "Go ahead."

"Oooh, goody," Vala said. "I knew that this whole thing could be cleared up easily. Let me go and get..."

"No," Landry said.

"No?" she asked.

"Why not?" asked Sam.

"Because you have just escaped the Ori and you barely survived it. I'm not letting you go back so soon. You either, Jackson."

"But, Sir..."

"I have another job for you," Landry told Vala and Daniel.

When Cameron had first realized where Vala had gone, it had been because he and Sam had heard of the village called Kent before. They had been there. Vala didn't know anything about it except that it had been the abode of two people working for the Ori. She wasn't anxious to go back. But Landry told her that they had to find out what had happened to the two people. So Vala agreed to go. Daniel wasn't as complying as she was. But he agreed reluctantly.

Kent, Vala now knew the name of the village, had changed significantly since her last visit. It had only been early spring when she had left. Now the flowers were blooming, the sky was blue, and it was very warm. But Vala looked around with unease, expecting that any minute Scott or Melaine would jump out at her and kill her. 

There was no one to meet them. Vala and Daniel walked into the village silently. Vala had not spoken to him since their argument. But now she said, "This way." she led him to one of the houses and knocked on the door. It took several minutes before it opened. 

"Vala MalDoran. You have come back to us," Akura said. His voice held surprise. 

"Hello. This is my...this is Doctor Daniel Jackson."

"It is nice to meet you. I didn't see you when SG-1 journeyed here last time," Akura observed.

"No, I was away," Daniel nodded.

"Well, come in." 

Vala turned to Daniel. "If you don't mind, I would like to speak to him alone," she said coarsely.

"Sure," Daniel said. He sat down on a chair to wait. He didn't know until Akura spoke again that the window was open. He could hear everything they were saying.

"I expected you to return, though not this soon."

"I wanted to tell you something. There were two people here, Melane and Scott who were working for the Ori," Vala told him.

"I know. We found out after you left. Scott was killed, and Melane escaped. You look much happier than when you left," he added, changing the subject.

"I am much better. But it wasn't because of this place. I should have stayed at SGC and faced it. But people under the influence of the Ori don't have much choice."

"Colonel Mitchell told me what happened before SG-1 left. I hope you don't mind."

"No. I spent several weeks here with your people and the whole time I didn't offer anything to tell you who I was. _I _could have been working for the Ori. So I'm glad he told you," Vala said softly. Daniel listened more closely, trying to hear what had been wrong with Vala when she was last here.

"But you have worked out your problems?" Akura asked.

"Yes." Vala's voice became more intent. "I don't know why I ran. I know I'm stronger than that. It was just such a shock when he said all those things. I mean, he's one of the people I admire most and when he accused me of all that, I guess I just totally freaked out," Vala said. Daniel assumed that Akura knew the person of whom Vala was talking. She went on. "Or maybe it was because in the back of my mind, I always have had a fear of not belonging at SGC because of all the terrible things I have done. And, Adria was my daughter. She's supposed to be mine, not the Ori's. And when I was told that because she's my daughter, I was wrong to be there, I think that I knew that, too," Vala said this more to herself than to Akura.

_"Because, Vala you don't belong here with us. You never have." _The voice rang in Daniel's ears. Was it his own? 

"I see now that it was all a plot of the Ori to get me to come here," Vala continued.

"Then why does what he said still bother you?" Akura asked.

"I don't know. I know that what I was told could have been true, like I said."

_Thirty-six hours without sleep...Vala sitting on his desk...the formula..."Because, Vala, you don't belong with us."..._Adria, something had been said about Adria. But what? 

_"What?" Vala had asked in a startled voice. _

_Daniel had looked up. "You heard me." _There was more. There had to be more. He just couldn't remember. 

_"...What's that supposed to mean?"_

_"It means, Vala, that you don't do anything around here." _

_"Really...risking my life on all those missions...my mistake."_

_"You don't listen, do you? My point is that you don't belong here." _Daniel's voice had been like steel. 

_"I can't believe that you were allowed to join SG-1."_

_"You made the suggestion."_

_"You don't belong here...you don't belong here...you don't belong here..." _Those four words burned into Daniel's brain. They seared into his innermost thoughts, creating an intense disbelief. He covered his ears, wanting them to go away. But they repeated over and over again until he was ready to scream.

Akura was talking. "This man? Do you..." 

"No!" Vala said with such an intense sharpness in her tone that Daniel wondered what it could have been that Akura was about to ask. "No," she said again, softer this time, but still with in the voice that forbade him to ask further. Daniel heard the chair scrape against the floor. There were footsteps. Her footsteps. "Well, I must be going." 

Daniel stood up, jumped off the porch and sat down by the corner of the house so that Vala wouldn't suspect that he had been listening. She came out of the house, followed by Akura. Daniel stood up again. "Thank you so much," Vala said. "I won't forget you."

"It has been my pleasure," Akura said, smiling. He shook Daniel's hand. "It was nice to have met you." 

Vala smiled for a moment, and then suddenly hugged the man who looked slightly surprised. Daniel himself felt surprised. Vala must have felt some strong connection with this man. She had confided in him, and now she was hugging him. She stepped back.

"Come on," Daniel put his hand on her arm. "We should go."

Vala nodded. "Good-bye," she said one last time, looking back over her shoulder. "Good-bye."

It was another silent trip through the gate. Vala had a thoughtful look on her face; Daniel had too much to think about. Why had he said all of those things? Even under the influence of the Ori, would he have been so shrewd? How could he ever apologize? The damage had been done. The repairs would be hard to make.

Well, here we are. One last chapter to go. I apologize for taking so long to get more posted. Please review. 


	17. Chapter 17

Two Days Later:

When Vala awoke, she felt nothing but peace. Everything was over. The Ori ship was gone, as well as the formula. She was home, and she was well. She got up, got dressed, and went to find Sam. She was not in the laboratory as Vala had expected. She sat down on a stool, wondering where else Sam could be. She looked through a microscope. Surprisingly, the glass plate was still there, reveling small shards of black wriggly things that looked like earthworms. Vala looked up, and locked eyes with Daniel.

"What are you doing here?" she asked. "Shouldn't you be working on...whatever you work on?" 

"Not right now," he said. "Vala..." he began, and broke off. 

Vala looked at him expectantly. "What?" she asked.

"I remembered what I said to you right before you left," Daniel stopped again, not knowing what to say. "Sorry," didn't seem strong enough.

Vala stood up. "It's okay. I'm gonna go." 

"It's not okay," Daniel objected. "You left because of all that. And no matter how strong the Ori's power was, I shouldn't ever have said any of it. Vala!" she wasn't listening.

"No! I don't want to talk about it!" she said forcefully. Vala started to leave the room. 

"Don't do that," Daniel said. 

Curiosity got the best of her. "Don't do what?" she asked.

"Don't run away like you always do when you've got a difficult decision to make!"

"That's not true! I don't run away." Daniel held her gaze for a very long two minutes. She cracked. "Fine," she said. Her eyes grew misty. "Look," she said and broke off. Her voice sounded cracked. "I know that you weren't at fault. I don't even really now why I took it so hard. And I don't know why I can't forgive you."

"None of that was true. You know I didn't mean any of it." He was pleading with her now, practically begging her to smile and tell him that it was okay.

Vala found it very hard not to run to him and hug him. It overwhelmed her, cascading down like a heavy rain. This was the man that had given her a second chance. This was the man that had convinced her to stop running; the one she always looked to for comfort and forgiveness. Now that he was the one who wanted _her _to forgive _him_, she knew exactly how it felt. After all the things she had done, after how many times she had risked all of their lives, he had always forgiven her. Why couldn't she forgive him when he asked for it just once? 

Daniel wanted to make her understand. He could see that she wanted to. Her eyes stayed misty, but they were also hard and cold. It made him sad. He suddenly realized how much it meant to him to have her approval. And now she was looking at him with contempt. 

"I know." she said. "I've told myself that hundreds of times, and it doesn't seem to make a difference."

"What aren't you telling me? Why won't you forgive?" he asked. Suddenly he saw that there was something else that was wrong.

She paused. "Because I think that you were right," she said slowly.

"What!" he was shocked.

"You were right," she said again. "I don't belong. I never will." It seemed to be falling together in her mind. She seemed to grip something. "I'm never going to be a part of this team. I was better when I was a horrid, lying, stealing woman who was always on the run!"

"Vala, no," he said. She had to be crazy. He walked closer, scared that she might turn and run, terrified that she wouldn't.

"Don't tell me it's true," she said. Her voice grew quieter. "I must have known it all this time. It must have been there."

"Of course you don't belong," he said. "Does anyone? Teal'c is Jaffa. Mitchell is...well, who knows? Sam is someone very different. I came here to find my wife and I discovered I had more to discover. You, you came here for help. No one belongs. We are all different. And it's that differential that holds us together as a team. Our backgrounds help us with fighting, discoveries, quick thinking. We help each other, and you have helped us more than I can count," he said.

She looked at him. "I know! Of course not. What, do you think I was going to leave or something?" she asked. 

"You sound forgiving. Are you?" he asked.

"It's okay," she said, smiling tearfully. He sighed in relief. "Come here," she said, holding out her arms. She did hug him, a simple, friendly hug. Nothing more, nothing less. Or so it seemed. She laughed. "I think that I should write a book," she said.

"A book?"

"With all the things I and SG-1 have gone through, who wouldn't pay good money to read all about them?" Vala asked. She could just imagine how rich she could be. 

"No," Daniel said. 

"Fine," Vala told him. "But when we become famous and everyone wants to interview us, don't tell me that you knew it was going to happen."

"Hey, guys, General Landry wants to see us in his office," Mitchell looked in. "The Ori have maimed a new city. He wants us to check it out."

Vala smiled. "Yet another chapter to make me famous."

"What?" Mitchell asked.

Daniel rolled his eyes. "Come on, let's go." He took Vala's arm and led her with him, listening to her chatter about how many fans she would have and how they would all want to hear about the adventures of the SG-1.

There it is, all seventeen chapters! I would like to say that this was a fun story to write. I would like to thank all of the fans. I hope you like this conclusion, and please, please tell me what you think. 


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